Users often require secure access to remote networks. For example, travelling sales personnel or teleworkers might require remote access to their office networks. Traditionally such access has been provided using virtual private networks (VPNs). However, only one VPN session can be run at one time, and VPN clients do not work with other VPN servers.
Managing network systems and equipment is also getting more and more complicated with the growing addition of many types of systems and services to the network. Voice services, a real-time critical system, have now migrated into this area as well, bringing all the complexity that goes along with them. Trying to manage a network externally is a major problem, especially from a security standpoint, as typically networks can only be managed locally within the network.